EDF Energy prepayment meter dispute help please,,,

rodeo

Hi

We have Edf prepayment meter for our gas it was installed around March last year we agreed to payback our debt through it @ £4 a week due to being on income support (debt was around £461).
Since around Novenber we have been charging it up with around £30-£35 a week which is absolutley killing us financially and for this we are having 4/5 hours of gas central heating per night , that is it no heating any other time and no other gas used.W e have thought this to be excessive but had an very old boiler until 2 weeks ago so mostly put the cost down to this but then it packed in and the gas was turned off and we had no heating whatsoever for 4 days but the money on the meter still went down, and I dont mean for the debt or standing charge so when the new combi boiler was installed we started to log what money was on the meter and realised that apart from the £4 it was taking every wednesday for the debt every morning £1.40 was being taken off the meter. So last Tuesday I rang EDF who said that for a week I had to take the meter readings so this I have done but I also took the meter reading after I had turned off the heating and again in the morning and although the meter reading was exactly the same as the night before the money left had reduced again by £1.40 every day this week this as happened .EDF rang me back today for my meter readings the woman worked out that all week we had used £15 of gas but I have charged meter with £30 (and kept receipts) so of course we want to know were this extra money is going but they are adamant their records show that they are only taking £4 in debt so now some one as to come and take the meter out so it can be sent away to be tested this can only be done on 27th of this month so another 3 weeks of piling money in this stupid meter. Im not convinced that the tests will show anything wrong with the meter as the woman said they test to see if the meter is running on too quick which I dont think is the case as its only the money side of the meter that is changing overnight not the meter reading. The plus side is we get another meter but I am now thinking should I ask for a new card too in case its the card thats been programmed to take extra money , even though they say it cant do that.
Im going to try and take pics on my mobile from tonight of the meter readings because I really dont trust them at all.
So I was wondering if anyone else as ever had this kind of problem or if there is anything else I can do to cover myself as I certainly dont trust them to say their meter is wrong.

sithmaster

hi up to yet they have followed the regulations however to put your mind at ease you may request the meter back for your own tests (send to an meter tester of your choice at your cost) and get a report back.
Its best to call your supplier before they take it to confirm you want this done.
I have no idea how much this would cost though.
If there report says the meter is faulty you should be owed a refund however they will proberly take any amount off your debt with them

good luck

C_Mababejive

Who is testing the meter? Have you requested an official test or are they simply going to take it out and walk away with it?

If you request an official test it will be removed,packaged and couriered to an official independent testing laboratory to obtain a report. This is normally chargeable to you if the meter is found to be ok.

In simple terms though,surely all you have to do is reconcile money paid across the counter with gas useage and they should tally?

Surely your supplier has copies of your readings and also data on how much money you have paid?

What sort of meter is it? Is it small white,about the size of a house brick or is it big square,probably yucky yellow or maybe grey front?

SwanJon

If you don't beleive that the readings are wrong, then I wouldn't bother with the test.
You can use the readings to work out how much gas you are using (in £). EDF will use readings on their systems, and can adjust the meter settings accordingly.

The meter will recover the £4 from the first top up each week after Wednesday 2am, not from the front of the meter.
It sounds like the meter is trying to catch up from missed weeks. When it is doing this it will take credit from the front of the meter around 2am each morning. If you are one week behind it will take one seventh each morining (~58p), and if you are two or more weeks behind it will take two sevenths (~£1.14).
If you are on a tariff with a standing charge, it make recvoer this each morning too (to make this work it would need to be about 26p/day, £94/year).

Is it possible that you missed some weeks, most likely over the summer when it was warmer?